Inspired by Life ... and Fiction

Novelists bound by the pen, sisterhood, & more

Spring Reads & a Giveaway

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There's something that's just so fresh about spring. Everything feels new and exciting. Even when it comes to reading. This time of year, I'm drawn to the new. Even with a TBR pile that could keep me in books for several months, I find myself peeking ahead to see what new books are coming down the pipeline. And this month, I found several to get excited about. My Top 3 Most Anticipated Early … [Read more...]

A Few Days of R&R

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From the last weekend in September of last year to the end of 2022, we hardly stopped. Some was planned travel. Some was not. There were the usual holidays and the accompanying busyness, and there was the puppy—and all that she entails.  So when we decided to put Dolly in “puppy school” for a couple of weeks, we wanted to take advantage of the time. We already had a trip on the books to … [Read more...]

The Inspirations Behind Memory Lane

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My next book, Memory Lane, is releasing in just two and a half weeks! I thought I'd dip into my files for this book and share some of my inspirations as well as a fun "book trailer" video with you. Inspiration #1: MAINE I've always been captivated by the pictures and videos I've seen of Maine. The rugged shore! The moody water! The dense forests! Plus, when I asked my readers which book … [Read more...]

Talking to My Friends

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The last two weeks I've been chatting with many of my writing friends as I've been recording new episodes of Book Talk. It has been such fun! Two weeks ago I chatted with Kristy Cambron and Jill Eileen Smith. Last week it was Lisa Phillips and her team of authors as well as Mary Connealy. And this week I had a blast connecting with Melanie Dobson, J'Nell Ciesielski, Lynn Blackburn, Lynnette Eason … [Read more...]

Immersed in Words

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Hi friends,  Happy Wednesday! I’m super excited to have Debb Hackett guest blogging for me today. Debb’s one of my mentees and friends, and I’ve loved watching her grow as a writer. Today she’s sharing about the power of words. Enjoy!  When I think back, most of my life has been inspired by words. As a child and teenager, I pored over books, using them to visit far-off or nonexistent … [Read more...]

Always More to Learn; Always More to Eat!

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No matter what your interests are, there is always more to learn, isn’t there? It’s one of the reasons I enjoy being a member of the Jane Austen Society of North America; an organization that offers lectures and workshops on a wide variety of topics of interest to history buffs, Jane Austen fans, and to authors of Regency-set novels like me. Earlier this month the meeting topic was Martha … [Read more...]

Bridges (Get the e-book FREE today only!)

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My novel, Bridges, set in the little town of Winterset, Iowa, home of the covered bridges of Madison County, is free for today only. Ken and I first visited the iconic bridges on a trip to visit our youngest son when he attended college in Iowa. That's where the idea for this book was first sparked, and we visited several times after that so I could research the area and the bridges. You might … [Read more...]

A Long and Winding Road

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As an author, I don’t have favorites among my own books. Each was written for a reason, and each is special to me in its own unique way. I will confess, however, to having some favorite characters from my books.  One of my favorite couples is Cleo and Sherwood from Fit To Be Tied (2009). I adore feisty Cleo, and I love “watching” her try to turn a British nobleman (recovering from wounds … [Read more...]

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